Mimicking Amazon’s bold strategy, Disney+ has now included ads on the platform in Türkiye for all its 1.5m existing subscribers. At the same time, the company launched an ad-free tier in the country, costing consumers more than double the price of the previous standard tier.

With this move, Türkiye has become Disney+’s first Central and Eastern European (CEE) market to introduce ads, and the thirteenth in Europe. In earlier European ad-tier launches, however, existing standard tier subscribers were offered ad-supported subscriptions at a 33% discount. This is the first time Disney+ has opted for the ‘opt-out’ approach, pioneered by Amazon Prime Video.

Prime Video debuted ads in ten markets in 2024, making it the default viewing method for subscribers in the US, Canada, and the EU big five markets, as well as Austria, Australia and Mexico. With this aggressive approach, the company became a major player in online video advertising overnight and has since gained over 100m ad-tier subscribers, with a reach of over 200m users on the ad tier globally.

Turkish customers are likely to be receptive to this approach: According to Ampere Consumer data, Turkish consumers have the highest ad tolerance in Europe, with six in 10 Internet households agreeing they’d be willing to watch ads for a cheaper subscription, on par with ad tolerance in the USA.

Recent price changes in Disney+’s remaining CEE markets suggest this could be the start of a new wave of aggressive ad-tier launches. Should Disney+ apply its Turkish strategy in the rest of CEE, the company could theoretically convert a further 3m into ad-tier subscribers overnight. But the move may not be as welcome in other CEE markets, as ad tolerance differs significantly within the region. In Poland and Romania, for example, less than half of Internet households agree that they’re willing to see ads in return for a cheaper subscription, while in Czechia this is as low as 29%. 

Looking ahead, a blanket opt-out ad-tier launch across the rest of the region may not be the best move due to varying consumer attitudes; a considered market-by-market approach may help mitigate potential churn.